Gowers' sign 1

Gowers' sign
Gowers' sign is a medical sign that
indicates weakness of the proximal muscles,
namely those of the lower limb. The sign
describes a patient that has to use his or her
hands and arms to "walk" up his or her own
body from a squatting position due to lack
of hip and thigh muscle strength. Gowers' sign
[1]
It is named for William Richard Gowers.
[2]

Associations
Gowers' sign is classically seen in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, but also presents itself in centronuclear myopathy,
myotonic dystrophy and various other conditions associated with proximal muscle weakness. For this maneuver, the
patient is placed on the floor away from any objects that could otherwise be used to pull oneself to a standing
position. It is also used in testing paraplegia.

See also
• Centronuclear myopathy (including myotubular myopathy)
• Duchenne muscular dystrophy
• Spinal muscular atrophy

References
[1] synd/1228 (http:/ / www. whonamedit. com/ synd. cfm/ 1228. html) at Who Named It?
[2] W. R. Gowers. A manual of the nervous system. Philadelphia; 2nd edition, volume 1, 1895.
Article Sources and Contributors 2

Article Sources and Contributors

Gowers' sign  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=383277018  Contributors: Arcadian, Eleassar, Nephron, Penbat, Rhcastilhos, Soap, Vagus, 7 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

Image:Gower's Sign.png  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Gower's_Sign.png  License: Public Domain  Contributors: William Richard Gowers (1845–1915)

License
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
http:/ / creativecommons. org/ licenses/ by-sa/ 3. 0/